A BUSINESSMAN landed himself in court for making homophobic slurs about two Easyjet cabin crew members and grabbing another one’s wrist.

Magistrates sentenced father-of-five Thomas Delaney to a 12-month community order at Liverpool Magistrates Court yesterday as well as 200 hours of unpaid work.

Morecambe man Delaney, 40, was arrested by officers at Liverpool John Lennon Airport following the incident which happened during a flight from Alicante on January 8.

Anna Johnson, prosecuting, told the court how he was “making a nuisance of himself” on the flight by frequently pressing the attention button.

Cabin crew member Jenna Birchall approached Delaney and noticed his voice was slurred.

Miss Johnson said: “She was struggling to hear what he was saying so she leaned forward and he said ‘those two gay boys I saw them kiss.’

“Miss Birchall took offence to this. He then grabbed her right wrist with his right hand. He was quite forceful, it caused pain to her wrist and forced her to cry out. She felt nervous and afraid of what was going to come.”

Upon arriving at the airport, Miss Birchall said she wished to pursue a complaint and Delaney was arrested.

The court heard that during the journey to the police station, he made homophobic remarks.

Delaney initially entered a not guilty plea but it was later changed to guilty of common assault and abusive behaviour on May 14.

His solicitor, Malcolm Greg, told magistrates that he does not dispute making the remarks, but the reason for grabbing Miss Birchall’s wrist was because “he was trying to ensure that she was paying attention to him in relation to the complaint.”

Mr Greg added: “He was concerned about their actions.

“If those actions were carried out, they might have also offended other people.”

The court heard that Delaney was in the process of moving between various countries and the UK in connection with his business which over the last four years expanded to France and Spain.

Mr Greg said: “It was the first time that the defendant had flown since having had business abroad. It was the first time he left his wife and five children..”

Sentencing Delaney, magistrates told him:“Your behaviour was clearly unacceptable, fuelled by alcohol and it was coupled with the homophobic behaviour.

“Although her injuries were minimal, you have not got the right to touch her, it is as simple as that. She was disturbed by the comments about her colleagues.

“You should think long and hard about your behaviour when travelling in future.”